Stupid Actions, Horrible Mistakes
by Carrina Carnarvon
Summary: Final Chapter! J/P Joey betrays Phoebe with the same woman he's already betrayed her with. Joey asks her to move home, what will she say? Please R&R! :-)
1. Default Chapter

This is mainly a Joey & Phoebe story, I know some of it won't make sense, or couldn't ACTUALLY happen, but that stuff is just there to make the story work. I have more chapters after this, if you like this one, I'll post them. Please review!!!! ( Disclaimer: I don't own Friends. Duh!  
  
Joey loved his wife, Phoebe, a lot, but lately she had seemed very distant and unhappy. He figured it couldn't be him, because, who could possibly be unhappy married to Joey Tribbiani? Thinking it was just a work problem, or pregnancy hormones, he never thought much of it. Looking back, he was starting to think he should have.  
  
(Three weeks earlier)  
  
Joey woke up to find Phoebe still asleep next to him. He quietly got of bed, not wanting to wake her, and took a quick shower. Thinking it would be a nice surprise to make breakfast, Joey pulled out some pancake mix from the cupboard and started cooking.  
  
"Yum, that smells good," Phoebe says, having woken up.  
  
"Yep. Good morning, sunshine," he says, hugging Phoebe, and then patting her stomach. They didn't know for sure if she was pregnant yet, but really hoped so.  
  
"I've got to go in for work this morning, my boss just called, and we are totally overbooked today," says Phoebe, sitting down for breakfast.  
  
"What? Work? Pheebs, it's a Saturday. You know, you don't have to go running in to work every time they call you!" Joey replies, slightly losing his temper.  
  
Phoebe gets a huffy look on her face; Joey was always after her for going into work too much. God knows she didn't like it that much, but she had to make a living somehow, and it sure wouldn't kill Joey to bring in some money, or at least support her.  
  
"Well, sorry, honey. But unless you're going to start starring in million dollar movies, one of us has to be bringing home some money. Besides, we might have a baby soon. And I want it to have the best childhood possible, unlike mine." Phoebe retorts.  
  
"Ok, fine. I'm sorry, it's just that it's Saturday, and you should be home.with me. I'll miss you, Pheebs." he apologizes.  
  
"Joey, I know you. And I know that's just a load of crap to make me forgive you. Oh, well. (Laughing) I've got to love you!"  
  
Ring, ring. The ringing phone interrupts Phoebe and Joey's quiet breakfast. Phoebe instantly rises from the table and snatches up the cordless phone resting on the counter.  
  
"Hello?" she asks.  
  
"Hi, is Joey there? It's Courtney, from his work."  
  
Phoebe scowls as she hears the woman talk. Why was this slut phoning Joey?  
  
"Of course," Phoebe says, bitterly, " I'll get him."  
  
Pulling the phone away from her ear, Phoebe hangs up on the woman.  
  
"Hey! Was that for me?" asks Joey.  
  
"Joey Tribbiani, I do not believe you!" Phoebe yells, outraged.  
  
"What? What did I do?" he asks, dumbfounded.  
  
"What did you do? You gave that tramp Courtney our phone number! After I specifically told you never to see her again. Ever since I told you never to see or talk to her ever again, ever since you KISSED her!!!!" Phoebe screams  
  
"Oh.yeah. I guess that's what I did," he admits.  
  
"Joey how could you?" Phoebe asks, feeling betrayed.  
  
"I'm sorry. She's my friend, and I swear, that kiss meant nothing.neither did the others.oops! I did not say that!!! Pheebs, you have no right to hang up on my friends, it could have been important."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. There were more kisses! Joey, I don't even know you! And yes, I do have a right to hang up on the little b!t*h who tried to steal my husband! You, of all people, should understand that. After Kathy cheated on you, with Chandler, I just thought you'd know better," says she.  
  
"Phoebe, would you quit throwing that in my face? It was like two years ago. Get over it. The only reason I ever kissed Courtney was because you were pushing me to. Pheebs, you were always at work, never at home, I got the feeling you didn't want to be with me. But fine! You know what? I'm out of here. I'm going to work.where SOME people appreciate me!!" Joey yells as he storms out of the apartment.  
  
"Joey, I didn't mean it like that!" Phoebe calls, but it's too late. Joey's already gone, and plenty mad to go with that.  
  
Joey got to work, feeling madder by the minute. Sure, he had kissed Courtney, but it didn't mean anything, nothing at all. He just wished Phoebe would get over it and stop throwing it in is face whenever they had a little fight. He was starting to think maybe they shouldn't have a baby, with all the fighting and everything, it wouldn't be fair to the kid.  
  
"Hey, Court," Joey says to Courtney, walking out of the elevator.  
  
"Hey, Joey. What happened this morning? Something wrong with the wife?" she asks, sounding concerned.  
  
"Oh, she's just upset that you're calling me after.well, you know," he explains.  
  
"Oh. I'm sorry about that, it's just I really needed to talk to you. No offence or anything, but I'd think by now you're wife would realize that we mean nothing to each other!!" replies Courtney.  
  
"We don't? Oh yeah, of course she should. It's just.oh.she makes me so mad sometimes! Like, for instance, this morning, she was getting on my case for not making enough money; well sorry if I'm not Al Pacino!! And again. last week, she started telling me off for drinking out of the milk carton. I always do that, so what's the problem now?" Joey exclaims, again losing his temper.  
  
"Oh, Joey, calm down. It can't be that bad," soothes Courtney.  
  
"Not that bad? She won't even sleep with me anymore. Me! I mean, I am gorgeous. It's like, I don't know, it just seems like, maybe she doesn't want to be together anymore," Joey says, upset.  
  
"Oh, Joey. I'm sure it's not that. I honestly don't know why your wife.Phoebe? (Joey nods) is acting so bitter. You know, the lounge room is empty. If you want, we can go talk.. or go over the script, or something." she says.  
  
"Ok. Let's talk. Thanks, Court. You're being a really good friend. I mean, like, we really hit it off.if I wasn't married to Phoebe, who knows?!" Joey says, half joking.  
  
"Really?" Courtney says, pulling Joey into the lounge, "I have a secret Joey. I don't know if you knew, but ever since I came to work here, I've had a crush on you. A big one."  
  
"Oh.so that explains that kiss," says he.  
  
"Yeah, I guess it does. Tell me, Joey, how does Phoebe's behavior make you feel?"  
  
"Ok, well, it's like I said. Sometimes, I get the feeling that she doesn't actually want to be married to me, and she acts like she's so much better than me, I mean, I love her, but lately she's been really pushing me away. And now, with this kid we might be having, it's not right. Maybe we shouldn't be together," Joey admits, sounding upset and mad at the same time.  
  
"Joey. Oh, Joey," Courtney says, as she slides over closer to Joey," You know, I think I know all the answers to your problems. The one thing that would make all the troubles disappear, make your days brighten up, and your life happy again."  
  
"I am happy, but what.is it?"  
  
Grinning slyly, Courtney whispers, "Me."  
  
Courtney repositions herself onto Joey's lap, and begins to kiss him, at first tenderly, getting more and more passionate. Joey knows it's the wrong thing to do, but he doesn't care, it feels right, and so good.and then he thinks of Phoebe. His wife that he loves, who may be carrying his baby. He knew he should stop, should push her away, but deep down inside, he didn't want to, and then Courtney took over his mind and body, and for the next little while, he didn't know a Phoebe at all.  
  
Sweaty and tired, Courtney finally gets off Joey.  
  
"Better?" she asks, innocently?  
  
"You have no idea," Joey says, catching himself, then saying," No! I mean, that was wrong. Good, but wrong. Court, I'm married.this is the second time I've cheated on her, with you. I am a terrible person.man, I'm an idiot!"  
  
"But, Joey!" she exclaims," What about all the stuff you said before? You made it sound like you don't even love her anymore. And you said we would be great together.and we were.so what's the problem?"  
  
"What's the problem? Courtney, I'm married, and it doesn't matter that I'm not all.totally in love with her anymore, but we're still married. You have to understand that," he says.  
  
"I do understand. I understand that you want to be with me, and I want to be with you, and your wife is just.holding you back!"  
  
"Ok, ok. You only understand like, one quarter of the whole thing. I've got to go.I have some serious thinking to do," Joey says, as he leaves.  
  
That's the end of chapter one. I hope it was good.so review it and tell me!!!! ( I know there was one part in here that didn't make sense, when Joey was going on about Pheebs working on Saturday, and then he goes to work, but just forget about that.it makes the story work. REVIEW!!!!!! 


	2. Chapter 2: The Confession

Chapter 2 is up, all I have to say!  
  
Joey walked around the city aimlessly for almost three hours, trying to think of a solution to his Phoebe/Courtney problem. He had nothing, absolutely nothing. He thought of the happy days he had spent with Phoebe, and how great they were, and he thought of the miserable days, they pretty much dominated his thoughts of Phoebe. Then there was Courtney, this young, smart, beautiful, fun woman who probably loved him more than Phoebe did. Joey had no idea what to do; his whole head was a mess of thoughts. Coming to a decision, he heads for home thinking that the first step is to tell Phoebe exactly what had happened.  
  
Joey quietly enters the apartment, where Phoebe is nowhere to be found. He closes the door, and walks to the living room, where he finds her sleeping on the couch.  
  
"Joey?" she asks groggily," Is that you?"  
  
"Yeah. It's me," he whispers, looking down at her beautiful form.  
  
Sitting up, Phoebe says,  
  
"Listen, Joey, I'm really sorry about these past few months. I know I've been acting.well, not nice, and I wanted to apologize. I think, that with my psychic powers and all, I think that something happened to you at work today. I'll understand if I drove you to do it, with my behavior and all, but if something's wrong, please tell me."  
  
"Well actually, something did happen.."  
  
Phoebe interrupts him with,  
  
"Joey, I love you so much. I want you to know, that if you ever doubted that love for one second, I'm sorry. I haven't been a good wife lately. Let me make it up to you."  
  
Suddenly, Joey can't bring himself to tell his wife what happened. She obviously loved him, and he couldn't hurt her with the news.  
  
Phoebe starts kissing Joey, and in between kisses she tells him,  
  
"I want to make it up to you, Joey"  
  
Joey goes along with it for a second, then exclaims,  
  
"I can't! I can't do it Phoebe. I have to tell you something, something really important, and it's going to break your heart."  
  
"Joey," she says, slightly angry, " What did you do?"  
  
"Ok," he says, taking a deep breath, "Today, at work, I wasn't feeling so great. Emotionally. Because lately, like you've said, us two haven't been that close. So Courtney and I started talking about it (Phoebe scowls at her name) and one thing led to another and.and I.(Hesitates) and I betrayed you, Phoebe. And I am so, so sorry. I completely understand if you hate me, but just know how sorry I am."  
  
"Joey, I do hate you. How could you? Especially with her? You know how I feel about that woman. Oh! I just do not believe you!" screams Phoebe, as she runs out of the apartment, crying.  
  
Joey honestly felt terrible about what he had done. Now, more than ever, he wanted to save his marriage. He couldn't just throw away something he had put five years of his life into. He had to do something big, something to win back her love, but how? It would be even harder now, now that she probably didn't even love him anymore. Joey stands up, about to leave when Chandler walks in, a questioning look on his face.  
  
"Hey Joe what's up? Phoebe just came in crying," he asks.  
  
"Chandler, I did something terrible. I slept with another woman. One who's not Phoebe," confesses Joey.  
  
"Well duh, of course it's not Phoebe! I'm not stupid.well what happened? Why'd you do it?"  
  
"I don't know, our marriage just hasn't been that great lately. Ok, and hear me, Courtney came on to me!"  
  
"Wait, wait, wait. You slept with Courtney? Courtney Ashbury?"  
  
"Yeah," says Joey, upset.  
  
"The same one as before? Wow, that's got to be hurting Phoebe." says Chandler.  
  
"I know. I know. I feel so terrible."  
  
There's a knock at the door, and for one fleeting moment, Joey hopes that it's Phoebe, saying that she forgives him. Joey opens the door and is surprised to see who's standing there.  
  
"Courtney?" he says, "What are you doing here?"  
  
END!!!! (ha, ha) So that's all I have for now. Personally, I didn't think that this chapter was really incredibly good, so review it and tell me what you thought!!!!!!!!!! (enough exclamation marks) Ok. Bye! 


	3. Chapter 3: The Holes in My Heart

Hee, hee, its chapter three! Ha, I rhyme now. Yeah, I don't really have that much to say, so I'll just start the story.  
  
"Courtney?" Joey says, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Oh you know, just thought I'd say hi. Hi!" replies Courtney.  
  
"Ok, hi. Now go, you absolutely cannot be here!" he urges.  
  
"Fine, fine. I'll go. Sheesh, what's your problem?"  
  
"Court, I just cheated on my wife with you, and I don't want her to see you here, ok? Now go, now."  
  
Courtney turned around to leave just as Phoebe walked out of Monica and Chandler's apartment. She had been over there, crying, telling Mon what had happened. When Pheebs sees Courtney, rage bubbles up inside of her.  
  
"What are you doing here?!" she yells.  
  
"I'm leaving, calm down, Godzilla."  
  
"Oh shut up, tramp. Get out of my sight before I beat on you!"  
  
"You're gonna fight me, then? Come on, let's go!"  
  
With one punch, Phoebe knocks out Courtney.  
  
"I sure finished her off," she says, "Joey, I am not finished with you yet."  
  
Joey looks scared, and keeps glancing from Phoebe to Courtney, lying unconscious on the floor.  
  
"Are you going to kill me?" he asks timidly.  
  
"Not yet."  
  
Chandler quickly exits the apartment and goes home to Monica. Phoebe and Joey go inside, she's finally ready to talk.  
  
"Phoebe." he says, only to be interrupted by Phoebe.  
  
"Joey, shut up. I was about to come over here, and maybe forgive you because I hoped that we could start over again. But then I come, and she's standing there, why? Why was she here?"  
  
"I honestly don't know. I didn't invite her, or want her to come, not in the least bit. She said she came to say hi. Why, I don't know. Pheebs, you've got to believe me," Joey replies.  
  
"Alright, I guess I can believe you. I don't trust you, though."  
  
"Let me tell you something, Phoebe. Right up to this morning, at work, I was thinking that you and I should maybe get a divorce or something. But then, when you got all mad at me, and stormed out, I realized how much I love you, and how much I would miss you if you ever left. I know that you can probably never trust me, or love me, ever again, but please, can we at least try? I'm so sorry that it happened, I want to start over."  
  
"I don't know if I can. This is the second time that you've done this, with the same woman that I've forbidden you to even see. I'll never love you as much as I once did, but deep inside me, I still do. I want to start over, too, Joey, but not yet. I'm not ready, and I can't be around you."  
  
"I know," he says," Do you want me to move out for a few weeks?"  
  
"No. I'm going to go to a hotel."  
  
"No, you should stay here. I'm the one who should go," whispers Joey.  
  
"I can't stay here. The place will just constantly remind me of you, and her, and if I'm going to be constantly thinking of you, I might as well live with you, which I don't want to do, so I'm leaving."  
  
"Ok."  
  
Phoebe grabbed up some clothes, money and other essentials and stuffed them into a suitcase. She quickly said good-bye Joey and left for the hotel. The place where she was staying wasn't overly fancy, but it was still pretty nice. She climbed into the large queen-size bed and felt alone without his body next to hers. Phoebe sighed, and eventually drifted off to sleep, thinking nothing of Joey the whole night.  
  
Joey had to do something big to get Phoebe back, but he didn't know what. Sure, he could tell her over and over again that he loves her, and he's sorry, and shower her with compliments, but it wasn't enough. It had to be something big, something huge, that told her that she was the only girl for him. Finally, feeling his brain was to flustered to think, he went to bed.  
  
"I have to get Phoebe back," he thinks, "But how?"  
  
Monica could not believe what Joey had done to Phoebe. She had noticed that things weren't fantastic between the two, but she never expected this to happen.  
  
"Chandler?" she says, "You would never cheat on me, right?"  
  
"No. Of course not. I love you. And no one would do it with me, anyways!" he says, doing that Chandler laugh.  
  
"Not funny. This is serious."  
  
"Ok, Ok. Monica, I would never cheat on you. You know that, and you have to trust me."  
  
"I do. Just wanted to make sure. Kind of wanted to freak you out a bit, too."  
  
The next day, Joey still had no idea of how he would win back Phoebe. He had had a few ideas, but none of them seemed big enough. After lots of thinking, he had it settled that lots of small things would also work. He had come up with this: Totally cut Courtney out of my life. Maybe quit my job.oh, but I like it. We could get our vows renewed. Oh, I don't know!!! Joey put down his list and went across the hall to Monica's. Maybe she would know what to do, or even Rachel. 


	4. Chapter 4: Hate To Say it, But I Miss Yo...

Next chapter's finally up, I know it took a while but some people cough-my brother-never get off the computer!!! Ha, ha. Ok, I'll just start it now.  
  
Phoebe had been staying at the hotel for two weeks. Joey missed her like heck, but she didn't really think of him too much. Phoebe had been going out almost every night with Monica and Rachel, who would try and cheer her up. It never did much help, though.  
  
Joey was a mess ever since Phoebe left. The apartment was strewn with clothes, dishes, garbage and anything else you could think of. He wore the same old dirty jeans and shirt day in and day out, never bothering to do laundry, or change. He and Monica hadn't thought of anything fantastic to win back Phoebe, but he was plugging away at it, getting closer each day. Yesterday he had called Phoebe. She didn't seem mad that he did, but she also didn't seem happy.just somewhere in the middle. She had said that she wasn't ready to come back home yet, and it may be weeks or months until she does. Joey had said a quick "I love you" and hung up.  
  
It was Saturday, exactly two weeks since the "incident" and Ross had come over to keep Joey company.  
  
"What should I do, Ross?" asks Joey, eating a slice of pizza.  
  
"I have no idea. When I cheated on Rachel, I didn't do anything.and I didn't get her back. I'm not sure, but you should maybe get your vows renewed, or have a second wedding, or even tell her you want to have a baby with her," suggests Ross.  
  
"A baby? She's always wanted one.that might work. But do you think she'll want to have a child with me, you know, after what happened?"  
  
"It's pretty much a 50/50 chance. But you know, having a child will represent your future together, and it will tell her that you plan on staying with her forever, and being loyal."  
  
"Really? You think it says all that?" asks Joey.  
  
"Sure, of course. I think you should do it, just go for it, and put yourself out there."  
  
"You're right. I'll do it."  
  
"Good. Joe, you could also quit your job," Ross suggests.  
  
"No way, I love my job. Phoebe's just going to have to live with that."  
  
"She won't, though."  
  
"Whatever. I've got to get busy with my plans.unless you want to help, you should go."  
  
Ross leaves.  
  
Joey spent the rest of the day cleaning up the apartment, making sure it was spotless. He was sure Phoebe would be coming home tonight. He bought a big bouquet of tulips, her favourite, and put them on the table, and then he spread rose petals around the entrance to the apartment. The place honestly looked fantastic, anyone would be proud to live there. That night, Joey got all dressed up in his rented tux and made his way over to Phoebe's hotel. He quietly knocks on the door, waiting until there is no answer. He knocks again, and then opens up the door. Phoebe is lying asleep on a couch, not looking very peaceful. Joey gently shakes her to wake up.  
  
"What's happening? Who is it? Joey?" she asks, confused.  
  
"Hey, Pheebs," says Joey.  
  
"Hi. What are you doing here, Joey?" she questions, standing up and straightening up her clothes.  
  
"I came to say this. Phoebe, I love you so much, and it was the biggest mistake of my life when I slept with Courtney. I want us to be together, and if you come back, I promise I will be faithful to you forever. I will do anything so that you'll regain your trust in me, I just want you to come home. I want to work on our relationship, because I see us having our future together. And Phoebe, I came over here tonight to tell you that.I want to have a baby with you."  
  
"Oh, Joey. That's so sweet. I just don't know if I'm ready yet.I would absolutely love to have a child with you, but it's just too soon. I don't want you to betray our child and myself."  
  
"Phoebe, I'm telling you, I'm never going to do that again! Especially not when we have children, I would have so much more to lose. I'm begging you, come home. Even for just one night, see if you can handle it. If you absolutely cannot handle living at home, I'll give you as much time as you need. Just give me this one night," begs Joey.  
  
"The first time you kissed Courtney you told me you'd never do it again. And you did. How am I supposed to believe you?"  
  
"You just have to have faith in me," he replies.  
"I'm not sure about that yet. As for tonight, I'll come home. For one night, but no sex or anything.I'll just be staying over as-as a friend, not your wife."  
  
"Ok."  
  
Joey escorts Phoebe out of the hotel. He had the evening perfectly planned- before taking her home, he was taking her out to dinner at a really great place. They caught a cab to the café, where they enjoyed a nice dinner, with no talk of Courtney. Afterwards, they went home, where Phoebe was astounded at how great the place looked.  
  
"Oh, Joey! Did you do all this for me? I love it! Oh, and tulips.I can't believe you remembered they're my favourite!" gushes Phoebe.  
  
"Of course I remember. How could I not?" he says, playfully.  
  
"Just not something that I'd expect from you," she says, breezily.  
  
Joey was about to get on her case for thinking he was completely non- romantic, but remembered quickly that this night was to win her back, not make her even madder. Phoebe opens up a bottle of wine for the two, and they have a really nice evening together. This was exactly the sort of thing that Joey missed, life was always like this back when things were good, and he so desperately wanted that back. Phoebe and Joey finally turned in, at about eleven o'clock. Phoebe slept in the bed, and Joey slept on the couch.  
  
The next morning.  
  
"I haven't slept that good in a long time!" says Phoebe, happily.  
  
"What do you want for breakfast?" asks Joey, happy that this was going so well.  
  
"Oh, doesn't matter, whatever your having."  
  
Joey cooked up a nice breakfast of eggs, pancakes and toast.he would have made bacon, but of course Phoebe wouldn't eat it.  
  
"Yum, this is really great," she says, eating her pancakes.  
  
"I'm glad you like it!" he replies, cheerily.  
  
Phoebe finishes her breakfast, and clears her plate.  
  
"I had a really great time last night. I really missed.well, you, as much as I hate to say it," says she.  
  
Smiling, Joey says,  
  
"So do you want to move back home?"  
  
Yep, another cliffhanger!!! Ha, I just love those. Please review and tell me what you think.I want to know!!! :-) Ok, bye!!! 


	5. Chapter 5: The Road to Forgiveness

Hi! I don't really have much to say so I'll just start writing.  
  
(Joey has just asked Phoebe to move back home)  
  
"Oh, Joey. I don't know.." says Phoebe.  
  
"What don't you know?" he asks.  
  
"I don't know if I can live with you again, or trust you, you really hurt me," she says.  
  
"I know I did, and I'm so, so sorry. What if we just lived together...as sort of a trial thing? For like a week, or something?" asks a hopeful Joey.  
  
"That's a good idea, but still...I'm scared," admits Phoebe.  
  
"You don't have to be scared. I love you, and I'll protect you," he says.  
  
"How can you protect me, if you're the one I'm scared of?" she asks, starting to cry.  
  
"I know you're mad at me, but why are you scared of me?" he asks.  
  
"I just...am. You broke my heart, and it hurt, and I'm scared that it's going to happen again. I'm scared that you'll leave me, and I'm scared that I might fall for you again, and you'll just leave me standing alone," Phoebe admits, tearfully.  
  
"You know that I would never do that...again. We've been over this, and I want to spend my life with you. I want to spend the rest of my life making up for what I've put you through," Joey replies.  
  
"I know you do, and I want us to be together, there's a part of me that wants to say 'Ok, I'll move back in with you, and I love you, and we'll be together forever', but then there's this other part saying 'NO! He hurt you, run and never come back!' and I don't know what to do, and it's so confusing, and then there's the trust issue, and oh Joey, it's so hard!" she exclaims.  
  
"It doesn't have to be. Which part are you going to listen to?" asks Joey, biting his lip.  
  
"Both of them." she replies, somberly.  
  
"Oh...I see. So what does that mean-for us?"  
  
"It means...I'll move home for a week, and then see what happens."  
  
"Really?" asks a happy Joey, "You mean it? You'll come home?"  
  
"Yes. But just for this one week. After that, I might stay a bit more, or I might go back to the hotel...we'll see. But Joey, there's just one more thing," Pheebs says.  
  
"What is it?" he asks.  
  
"When I decide I can live with you full-time, I want...no, I need us to get a new apartment, and I really need you to quit you're job."  
  
"My job? No! I can't Pheebs..."  
  
"Then I'm afraid I can never be with you again."  
  
"Why not? What does my job have to do with it? You know how much I love it."  
  
"Joey, just imagine I slept with some guy you had forbidden me to see, and after everything was better, I still worked with him, and saw him everyday, and you didn't know what was happening."  
  
"Oh...I get you're point." Sighing, he adds, "If it means that much to you, I'll find a different job. And we can start looking at new apartments."  
  
"Thanks, Joey. It really means a lot to me. It's just after all this, I want us to start all over again, new apartment and just a clean slate."  
  
"I totally understand," says Joey, embracing Phoebe.  
  
Joey lets Phoebe go and suddenly gets an idea.  
  
"Hey, why don't we go tell everyone the news?" he proposes.  
  
"Sure, Ok. I think Ross and Rachel are at Monica's, so everyone's there!" exclaims Phoebe.  
  
Joey escorts his wife across the hall into Chandler and Monica's apartment. Entering as usual, not bothering to knock, they arrive.  
  
"Hey!" says Chandler, "You two are together?"  
  
"Yep!" replies Joey, cheerily.  
  
"Wh-what happened?" asks a whimpering Rachel.  
  
"I agreed to come back and live with Joey...but for only a week," announces Phoebe.  
  
"That's great, you guys!" congratulates Monica.  
  
"I'm so happy for you," says Ross, drinking a glass of water.  
  
"Yeah...me too. So happy for you," says a less than enthusiastic Rachel, "I've gotta go."  
  
Rachel hastily leaves the apartment leaving Phoebe to wonder what's wrong. On instinct, Pheebs runs after her forlorn friend.  
  
"Rach? What's the matter?" she asks.  
  
"Oh, it's nothing. I'm fine...I just have to go," replies Rachel.  
  
"Oh how come?" asks Phoebe.  
  
"Th-they...um...they need me at work."  
  
"Oh, Ok. Bye, then."  
  
"Bye. Congratulations," says Rachel, sounding extremely upset.  
  
Phoebe watches as her friend quickly leaves, wondering why they needed her at Ralph Lauren on a Sunday.  
  
Rachel quickly walked down the street, feeling terrible.  
  
"Rachel!" she silently scolds herself, "You absolutely cannot feel that way about Joey! He's with you're...you're best friend."  
  
Rachel had secretly had feelings for Joey for about a month, and it was killing her to see him so happy with Phoebe. She knew it was wrong to feel like this, especially since Pheebs was one of her best friends, but she couldn't help it.  
  
"Oh, my god," she thinks, "I have got to stop this!"  
  
After Rachel's sudden departure, the remainder of the gang stays up and celebrates.  
  
"So Pheebs, do you think you'll for sure move back?" asks Monica.  
  
"I don't know, probably will, eventually," says a stand-offish Phoebe.  
  
"Like when, do you think?"  
  
"You know, I don't really want to talk about this now."  
  
"Ok, sorry," apologizes Monica.  
  
Joey was overjoyed with happiness that Phoebe was coming home. Sure, it was only for a week, but he would make sure it was the best week of her life, and that she would never want to leave. Joey quietly left Mon and Chandler's, sitting down in the hallway. He was currently drafting a list of things to do for Phoebe. 1. Make her breakfast everyday. 2. Take her out for nice dinners 3. Make sure she knows I love her 4. Try for the baby thing again 5. Pamper her  
  
Joey is startled when Phoebe enters the hall, too.  
  
"Joey, what're you doing?" she asks.  
  
"Oh, it's nothing. Let's go home." he replies.  
  
"Home," she thinks, "It's not home...it never will be."  
  
"It's never going to be the same again," she quietly says to Joey, as she hurriedly gets ready for bed.  
  
"Well...what do you mean?" he asks, dumbfounded that she was suddenly so unhappy.  
  
"You should know by now," Phoebe replies somberly.  
  
Saying a quick goodnight to Joey, Phoebe gets in bed and instantly drifts off to sleep. Funny, the only thing she could think about was Rachel, and how oddly she had acted earlier.  
  
And that's it for now. Not much of a cliffhanger, well not at all, but I couldn't think of one for this chapter. So ok, I hope this chap was better than the last, and so review it and tell me what u think!!!! I'll post the next chapter soon, it won't be more than a week. I'll stop talking now...I'm gonna start babbling. Bye bye!!! ;) :-) 


	6. Chapter 6: Apartment Hunting

Hey, sorry it took a while, but I was busy with other things. If I don't finish it up in this chapter, the next one will definitely be the last. So, yeah okay I'll start now! (  
  
It was the last day of Phoebe's "trial period" of living with Joey, and she honestly wanted to stay. The two of them had had a great time the past week, and it was just fun. Every night, Joey brought home the real estate paper and they would go through it looking for suitable apartments. Last night they had found one. It was a gorgeous two-bedroom apartment in the village, not far from where they currently lived. It was a little out of the price range, but Joey didn't care, as long as it made Phoebe happy.  
  
"There's an open house today," says Joey, "At the place we want."  
  
"Really? Great, we'll go then," replies Phoebe, reading over his shoulder.  
  
An hour later, Joey and Phoebe were at the apartment, checking it out at the open house. The place looked really great, it had beautiful hard wood floors, a nice kitchen, and all around, it was just great.  
  
"I'd like to make an offer on this.property," says Joey, to the real estate agent.  
  
"Great. Hi, I'm Ted McCormack, follow me," says Ted McCormack.  
  
Phoebe and Joey follow Ted into the living area, where he spreads out numerous papers and folders.\  
  
"How much were you thinking?" he asks, greedily.  
  
"We'd like to make an offer of $200,000!" exclaims Phoebe.  
  
"Well.considering the place is selling for $150,000, stupid price, is worth a ton more, we'll take it! I'll call you on Thursday with more details," announces Ted.  
  
"Great," say Pheebs and Joey.  
  
Rising from the couches, they decide to look around a bit more, maybe check out the other rooms. Strolling into the master bedroom, Joey sees a figure from behind that looks unusually familiar.  
  
"Courtney?" he asks, astounded.  
  
"Joey?" she asks.  
  
"You!!" hisses Phoebe, getting mad.  
  
"Court, why are you here?" asks Joey.  
  
"Honestly, I don't know. I'm not even looking for a house.but I need to talk to you, so whatever, you know?"  
  
Phoebe scowls as Courtney pulls Joey aside.  
  
"You don't have to worry about quitting your job.you know because of me? Joey, I quit instead.for you," she says.  
  
"Oh, thanks, Courtney. That's really great of you..but I should go, don't want to upset the wife. I just got things all better, so you know," he says, flustered.  
  
Going in for a hug, but changing her mind, Courtney shakes Joey's hand, and exits the room.  
  
"Why was she here? What was she talking about?" Phoebe asks, angrily.  
  
"It's nothing bad, Pheebs, calm down. She just wanted to tell me that she quit her job, so I don't have to," he says.  
  
"Oh, well isn't that wonderful of St. Courtney." Phoebe remarks, sarcastically.  
  
"Pheebs, really, calm down. She won't be there anymore, so there's no reason for me to quit!" Joey exclaims.  
  
"Alright, alright. I guess as long as she isn't there, I'm okay with it. Just promise me one thing, Joey."  
  
"Okay, I will. I promise."  
  
Phoebe and Joey casually headed home, but inside they were bursting with excitement. They were so close to getting this great apartment, and their marriage was mending.  
  
Rachel, on the other hand, was a mess. She hated herself for feeling this way, but she just couldn't help it. Everyday, she felt like scum waking up, and she didn't want to move out of bed, since her entire reason for being was with her best friend.  
  
"Monica," she says, "I really need to tell you something."  
  
"What is it, Rach?" she asks, concerned. Rachel had come over earlier, looking awful in old sweats.  
  
"I feel so awful for feeling like this but.but I.I like Joey."  
  
"Well, duh. He's your friend."  
  
"The other way, Monica!"  
  
Realizing this, Monica shakes her head and replies,  
  
"You know you have to get rid of those feelings, right?"  
  
"Yeah, I do. And I will, there's no way I could live after breaking up those two."  
  
Rachel stayed at Monica's a little longer and then left. Something her friend said earlier sparked an idea in her mind. "Maybe you should go away somewhere," Monica had said. That was exactly the thing Rachel needed.but she had no money. Taking in a deep, shaky breath, Rachel realized that the only way she could lose these feelings for Joey was to tell him. Phoebe would be so mad, but that could be fixed.Rachel was sick of hating her life, and intending on fixing the problem.  
  
"Joey," is all she says, entering his apartment.  
  
"Rach, is that you?" he asks, exiting the bathroom.  
  
"Yeah, yeah it is. Listen, I need to talk to you. Is Phoebe home?"  
  
"No she went shopping," he says, plopping down on the recliner.  
  
Rachel sits down on the one next to his, and says,  
  
"I really need to tell you something, and I'm not proud of it, and I don't want you to think that I want us to be like.you know."  
  
"Do I know? Well what is it?"  
  
"Okay, it's just that basically, lately I've sort of.liked you."  
  
"Well duh, I'm your friend," he replies.  
  
"The other way, Joey," she says, uncomfortably.  
  
"Ohh," he says, "Wow. You know I can't do anything about it, right?"  
  
"Yeah, yes I do.that's why I said that before, you know."  
  
"Right, now I do know! So Rach, you want to go to lunch, or something?" asks Joey.  
  
"Not today, but maybe another day. I need to sort out some.stuff right now."  
  
"Okay," he says, " If you want to talk, I'm here."  
  
"Thanks, Joey," replies Rachel, walking out the door.  
  
Phoebe walks in the door soon after Rachel leaves carrying a few shopping bags.  
  
"Hi Joey," she says, setting them down on the table.  
  
"Hey, Pheebs. Listen, um." he says, trailing off.  
  
"I was thinking. Now we're getting the new apartment and everything, and I want you to know that I am absolutely, totally ready to live with you again!" she exclaims.  
  
"That's great, Pheebs! Thank you so much," he says, forgetting about the Rachel issue.  
  
Joey hugs Phoebe tight, for a long time. The phone starts ringing, but they don't pick up.  
  
Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Tribbiani. This is Ted McCormack, the real estate agent. Anyways, I have the results on your offer, and.  
  
Ha, ha, another cliffhanger. Don't worry, I'll update soon! I hope you liked the chapter, so review & tell me what you think, okay? ( Good! 


	7. Chapter 7: The End is Near

This is going to be the last chapter, and I'm warning you, it's going to be really, really short, because I just want it finished and done with. I hope you like it, even though it may not be fantastic, and I'll start now! (i don't own friends!! duh)  
  
Phoebe and Joey moved into their new apartment and loved it. It had a gorgeous view, and was the answer to all their dreams. Phoebe was currently 1 week pregnant with their first child, and was loving pregnancy...so far. They had not spoken of Courtney ever since they saw her at the open house, and life was good.  
  
"Good morning," says Phoebe.  
  
"Morning," replies Joey, patting her stomach.  
  
Phoebe's peaceful look suddenly turns sour and she runs off to the bathroom.  
  
"Morning sickness," thinks Joey out loud.  
  
8 months and 3 weeks later...  
  
In the hospital, all of the F*R*I*E*N*D*S are anxiously awaiting Phoebe to give birth. She hadn't been in labour too long, it couldn't be more than 2 or 3 hours. Ross and Rachel had since hooked up, and Rachel had totally gotten over her "Joey" feelings, and she liked to forget about that part of her life. Monica and Chandler were still enjoying marriage, with no kids. Yet.  
  
13 hours later...  
  
Phoebe has finally given birth to...twins! A boy and a girl. Already, with their children just minutes old, Joey and Phoebe love them more than anything in the world, exept for each other. They have not decided on names yet, but that isn't important, as long as the kids are healthy.  
  
"Aw, look," says Joey to Phoebe. Baby Girl Tribbiani had just grabbed Joey's thumb.  
  
"Isn't that just the sweetest thing," Phoebe replies, teary-eyed. She looks down at Baby Boy Tribbiani and says,  
  
"Hey Baby Boy. I'm you're mommy...that's you're daddy. We love you so much."  
  
The next day...  
  
Phoebe is still in the hospital, scanning a list of possible names...drafted by who else but Monica.  
  
"Joey, what do you think of Yasmine for Baby Girl?" she asks.  
  
Joey smiles at the Baywatch reference and replies,  
  
"I love it. I think it really fits her, don't you think?"  
  
"Yeah. I do," she says.  
  
The rest of the gang enters the room, and Phoebe announces,  
  
"Everybody, I'd like you to meet Yasmine."  
  
Chandler immediatly looks over at Joey, and grins at the choice of name.  
  
"Do you have any ideas for Baby Boy?" asks Rachel.  
  
"I don't know, but I think just "Baby Boy" would be pretty cool," replies Phoebe.  
  
"I dunno..." says Joey, "How about Rossler? You know, named after my best friends?"  
  
Chandler and Ross smile.  
  
"Rossler? It's got a ring to it...how 'bout instead of Yasmine...Monchel?" asks Phoebe, "You know, after my best friends?"  
  
Monica and Rachel smile.  
  
"Monchel? Do you want our child to be beat up?" asks Joey.  
  
"No...then there's no way I'm naming Baby Boy Rossler!" exclaims Phoebe.  
  
"Okay, I got it!" exclaims Monica, "For Baby Boy, I think you should definitely name him David."  
  
"David..." Phoebe thinks out loud, "I like it. He sure does look like a David. What do you think?" she asks Joey.  
  
"As long as you love it, I love it," he replies.  
  
The end. It's over, and yeah. I hope it was a good story and you liked it. Now I'll be dramatic. Good bye. FOREVER! 


End file.
